Obama gives 600,000 workers paid sick leave ... but Trump could take it away
President Obama signed an executive order last September giving paid sick leave to workers on federal contracts. Now, that’s taking the next step toward becoming a reality as the Department of Labor has finalized the rule governing the policy, which will cover new contracts starting January 1, 2017. Obama told Slate that:
Coming to work sick is bad for employees, co-workers, and customers alike. No one wants a colleague coming in and getting you sick. No one wants to be served by a waiter who’s under the weather. I’d much rather go to a restaurant knowing that if a chef or waiter is sick they have the choice to stay home without losing their paycheck.
That’s why it’s so important that this new rule becomes final today. It will give additional paid sick leave to more than 1.1 million federal contract workers in the first five years, including nearly 600,000 who currently receive no paid sick leave at all.
But just as importantly, this rule means that the federal government is putting our money where our mouth is. We know that providing at least seven paid sick days a year to our contracted workforce will give us the best value for taxpayer dollars and is good for workers and business alike. That’s the same decision that companies large and small throughout the country have made, and we hope our leading by example will convince others to do the same.
Expanding sick leave isn’t all. The Obama administration is also taking the next step toward tracking pay data that could show if employers are discriminating on the basis of gender, race, or ethnicity.
But the thing about executive actions is that the next president can undo them. Look at the date on that paid sick leave order: January 1, 2017. If Donald Trump is elected, he could quickly reverse Obama’s advance. That’s one more reason why, however unlikely it is that Trump will be elected, we have to work to be sure there’s absolutely no chance of it.
Can you give $3 to support a candidate who supports paid leave?